A group of crows is traditionally called a murder of crows. The dramatic name belongs to the English tradition of colourful collective nouns and is commonly linked to folklore about crows and death. It's a literary nickname, rather than a scientific description of what the birds are doing.
There are several explanations for the name. The precise person who coined it, and their reason, are harder to pin down than a list of animal group names might suggest.
Where the name comes from
Crows are scavengers, which helped connect them with dead animals, battlefields and cemeteries in European folklore. PBS Nature's guide to crows describes several stories behind the name, including an old tale about crows gathering to judge another crow. Those are explanations from folklore, rather than evidence that birds hold criminal trials.
The wider tradition of elaborate group names goes back centuries. Audubon's discussion of collective nouns points to the Book of Saint Albans, published in 1486, as an early collection of these terms. That helps explain the naming tradition; it doesn't establish exactly who first decided to call crows a murder.
Can you just call them a flock
Yes. “Flock” is an ordinary word for a group of birds, including crows. In an interview with BirdNote, crow researcher Dr Kaeli Swift explains that names such as “murder of crows” are colloquialisms rather than scientific terms.
You can enjoy the phrase without treating it as a description of the birds' character. Crows have picked up plenty of spooky associations, but those associations vary across cultures.
What researchers have learned about crows
The real behaviour is interesting enough. The University of Washington describes research showing that American crows can recognise individual human faces and share information about danger.
Crows also sometimes gather around a dead crow. Researchers have investigated how these gatherings help the birds learn about threats. Calling them “crow funerals” is memorable, but it doesn't mean we know their experience is the same as human mourning. The word “murder” tells us much less about crows than watching what they actually do.
The Attempted Murder Tee
At LKC, the collective noun became a bird pun. The Attempted Murder Tee shows two crows with “Attempted Murder” beneath them. It's a “not quite there yet” joke, rather than a field-guide rule about how many crows make a flock.
The concept came from Kristine in our LKCC community, and Claire Harrison created the artwork. We print the tee to order in Sydney. You can check the current colours, fits and sizes on the product page.
For more jokes you can wear, browse our funny t-shirts, or explore the bird collection for more illustrated bird designs.
